Battles Untold
by Goddessoftheskies
Summary: After that whirling tornado brought her down to the world below, Zelda's life truly took flight. Her true adventure is only just beginning... Skyward Sword told from only Zelda's point of view. Possible Zelink-y in future chapters...if there are more future chapters.
1. Chapter 1

_AUTHOR BABBLE;_ This is a drabble I wrote early last year, and I opened it again and really liked it. Thinking I might make a full story out of it! I think if I _do_ make this a full story, it'll be told from only Zelda's POV. I thought about trying to do Link's POV, too, but I want to see if I can make this a fic about the unseen events on Zelda's side of things. Sure, we got her tidbit at the credits, but we never got the _full_ story...

This is my first writing thing I've ever posted here. Still really new to fanfiction...still learning the kinks and the gears of the site. I've read a few stories but don't know my way around here yet.

I hope this is satisfactory? SS is my favorite game and I know everything there is to know about it, so if this gets good feedback, I'll share it on my tumblr. I have over 5k followers there, and I've never posted any of my fandom writings there either- so I guess this is a test run. I wanna see if I'm good enough for sharing it there. I have great followers.

Hope this is interesting enough, heh~

* * *

If I close my eyes, I can remember.

I can remember the color of the trees, and how they dotted the world like a winding maze. How the birds- so unlike the ones I am used to- took flight in flocks and sang songs to one another. Their voices would carry across the treetops, like a language only they knew. It was beautiful.

I can remember the small creatures that accompanied the small birds; how they scuttered across the ground and into the bushes to dig holes, or make nests. I've only seen them in picture books, so I can't help but doubt- but I can see them, if I shut my eyes. If I remember the things I see when I sleep at night.

I remember the riverbeds- they wound through the land like jagged lines, and they gave everything there life. The small creeks could lead to full lakes that went _down, down, down_- into the earth, where it hid all sorts of strange and colorful creatures you don't see in the light. It was a whole entire world within the world itself- but it was a mystery, unlike the green hills above the waters. And though the green hills and the sharp mountains were dream-like, I understood them. It made perfect sense, when my eyes were closed- so much unlike the strange curiosity I encountered when I remembered these things in the waking world.

I can never recall all of it perfectly; dreams are fuzzy and I can only remember them with a blind haze. It all seemed so real, though- the world was big, it never ended, it was _alive_. There were no limits, no boundaries. It stretched on and on as far as the eye could see- as far as I ever wanted to go. More than I could ever hope to travel in the clouds.

I want to know that world, but I always wake up.

And the wonder is beginning to take over.


	2. Battles Untold: Chapter two

_AUTHOR BABBLE;_ I kinda like how this chapter turned out. I figured since I'm doing an SS fanfic that I'd start at the very beginning. Pretty sure I'm focused on this whole shebang being only from our _lovely_ Zelda's POV- yes, I'm liking this idea. I'm stickin' with it.

There will probably be a significant amount of time passing between chapters. A fanfic that covers every. Single. Detail. Down to the littlest thing, drags on for a while. I don't want to be draggy.

Hopefully I portrayed Link and Zelda right, in this first real chapter...I tried to make it believable. Woohoo!

* * *

Sometimes, if I look over the edge, I think I see it.

Bits of fluffy green, floating underneath the infinite white. Pictures and scenes of the green from my dreams, the vast world with no cloud barriers that I can't decipher when I am awake. Every fantasy of such a world brings up the question: _where does it end? how far does it go before it stops?_ But the visions in my head when I sleep do not answer those things; it simply goes on, and I never think to question it in the dreamworld.

Sometimes I catch myself waiting- watching- for the imaginary color I think I saw to come back, but it never appears when it is beckoned. The clouds continue to stroll slowly by, over one another and endlessly merging into new formations, blocking any hope of the color green in a place it should not be. The sky is white. The sky is blue. It always has been, and always will be. There is no color green below us- only the endless, frothy embrace of the clouds.

So we've been told.

This frustrating thought process is suddenly interrupted by a tap on the shoulder. I jerk awake and manage a frown, realizing it was nothing but a dream. My head is on my knees- I drifted off.

Maybe it was all in my head after all.

"Zelda." A familiar voice says from behind me. "What are you doing?"

I blink rapidly, adjusting to the change in scenery. The sun is far off in the distance now, and the clouds are orange. Murky pinks and yellows interlude within the skybase, stretching out as far as the eye can see. I scoot away from the edge with the heel of my boot, realizing the danger I've mindlessly walked into.

"Oh, hey, sleeping." I say in a raspy tone. "Dear Goddess, I'm so thoughtless."

"I'll say." Link retorts. "Are you okay? That wasn't very smart of you to drift off on the edge of the dock."

A strong hand on my shoulder plants me firmly in place. I let out a nervous laugh. "Yeah, sounds like something you'd do," I meander, peering downward. I let out a yawn. "You need to stop napping during class. I think it's rubbing off on me."

"Hey, I might be sleepy, but I definitely _don't_ fall asleep at the island's precipice." he points out, nudging his knee into my back. "It's getting late. I was wondering why you didn't show for dinner. Now I know."

"Dinner?" I repeat after him. "I guess I slept the day away, didn't I?"

"You didn't miss much, trust me."

I rise vertically, trying to catch my balance. Link steadies me.

"Oh, really?" I counter, glowering at him from below my angry eyebrows. "You promised you'd train."

His eyes get shifty when I say that, and he scratches his head in a sheepish manner. I don't get an answer.

"Link, there's less than three weeks until the big race." I remind him. "You haven't been completely inactive, but you could have done more, too."

No eye contact. His lips turn into a slight pout. His eyelids grow heavy, and he gets that sleepy look I've been waiting for to make an appearance.

I sigh. "I know you won't break a promise you made me." I taunt him. "Tomorrow morning, bright and early- we're going to get your sleepy butt out of bed. No avoiding it this time, okay?"

" 'Kay."

"That's what I like to hear." I say, giving his flop of hair a ruffle. I think I just created a makeshift version of his real sleepy self. "I know you'll be great. I know you're excited, too. This race could change your future."

"Full-fledged knight." he grins.

"Yes. If that isn't enough motivation, I don't know what is." I continue. "Training aside . . . if this is our last night before you get seriously studious, we should make it memorable."

His grin melds into a better excitement. "Okay, okay, I've got an idea." he agrees easily. "Pumpkin Landing! I know a bowl of soup that's got your name on it."

I raise my eyebrow. "Sounds like a nice evening." I go along. "Deal."

He offers me his hand, and I shake it, confirming the rendezvous.

"Can't promise I can pay for you this time." he shrugs.

I frown. "Why not? It's your turn. You ate three bowls last time. I think it's my night to do the same. We're not all made of rupees."

He doesn't even have time to bask in whatever obvious joke he's playing. He's already whipped past me and thrown himself off the dock.

"Last one there's got an empty wallet!" his voice calls out from below. A sure whistle soon follows. His crimson ride, waiting nearby, swoops past me in a flurry of feathers to catch him.

Dumbfounded, it takes me a second to catch up to the charade. Seconds after he's already soaring away, I gripe to myself in annoyance- but not before I race after him, flinging myself into the open sky below.

* * *

Clear horizons. The endless abyss of dark blue is fading, brightening into early morning. Only a few clouds dot the sky; cottony puffs still dull with the nighttime stillness. They meander slowly by, still waking up. Perfect weather for riding.

The creak of the Academy door swings shut behind me. I take a brisk look over my shoulder to see who's there- just as promised, he's here. Up bright and early for some much-needed training, Link stumbles towards me, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

When he reaches me, I tuck his growing hair behind his ears. Straighten his wrinkly sleep shirt. He is the picture of exhaustion, as always. He huffs out a yawn, and it floats towards me in a visible puff of warm morning breath. The early air is chilly. I cringe.

"Maybe all those bowls of soup wasn't such a good idea," I frown.

"So worth it," he manages, still yawning. He gives me a lazy grin. "especially since you paid."

I squint my eyes at him. "Shoulda known better than to let you eat that much. Good food just makes you sleepier." I reply. "And hey, you sprung that on me too quick. You also had a head start in that race."

"That's okay, you always have a head start before me anyway," he shrugs only one shoulder. "like in the mornings."

I pat him hard on the back, trying to wake him up. "I'm sorry to put you out of your element, but this will all be worth it when you win the race." I smile. "Training could be good for you. Just remember that's why we're doing this."

"Aye aye, cap'n." he nods, straightening his posture. He salutes me with a focused facade.

"That's the spirit!" I say, turning on my toes. I kick up the dirt path behind me. "Now, I already prepared our birds. They're both up and ready to fly. They've had breakfast. Except on the day of the race, you won't have me to help you. I'll be with my father, preparing- I have my own role to play that day."

"What would I do without you?" he muses, greeting his loftwing. "I'll have to remember to get up extra early."

"Please do." I agree. "Your bird's a real catch though, so it's not all _just_ you. I think he'll really pull through for you, but maybe this training will prepare him better for the big race. They're trained for it, so maybe he'll realize what we're doing, too. Preparing."

"I think I'm starting to wake up. Yeah- a good once-over around the island should get the juices flowing."

"Yes! Encourage those thoughts."

He squints his eyes at me, managing a playful smile. "Sure hope I don't fall asleep while I'm in the sky." he teases.

"Okay, I see you're making jokes. That means you're good and awake for-"

"I could _die._"

"That was an extraordinary coincidence-"

"Guess I'll drill Link tomorrow about staying alert and focused on the task at hand."

I raise my eyebrows, waiting for him to continue.

"Oh, all right. Sorry. I was just teasing," he mutters after a moment. "but y'know, being a sleepyhead and drifting off at the island's edge are two different stories. Kinda had me worried there."

He peeks a sideways glance at me, awaiting an answer. I can't help but drop the seriousness to smile sheepishly in return.

"Okay, I guess I'm not one to talk after that." I admit. "Thanks for finding me. I am indebted to you. I owe you my life, blah blah blah. We should get started- the island will be stirring soon."

He breathes out a foggy breath, turning his attention to his bird. With a nod, he clicks his tongue and waits for his bird to lower. After he mounts, he suddenly has a more determined air about him.

"Let's win this race." he declares, before he takes off.

An hour passes by filled with nothing but pure flying. After a couple laps around the island to warm up, I gave Link an interesting first test; having taken an old fairy doll from my dorm room, I told him to pretend that the doll was the prize- the wooden loftwing statue he'll be chasing during the real race. I don't know what he expected, if it was greater or lesser what I came up with, but he was up for it once I explained. Obviously, he was going to treat this like the real race- see how he'd do if today were the big day. And obviously, like the real race- I, the gleaming golden bird with flowing locks, gets the pleasure of enjoying a head start.

"Now you're just having too much fun." he muttered after I was done tying the doll to my bird.

I didn't answer. I just waved goodbye and sailed away into the horizon, taking the prized fairy doll with me. Once I was a fair trip to the Pumpkin Landing away, I gave him a signal.

As quick as sand in an hourglass, he let himself fall into the mass boundary that I had flown between us and made no show of showing me how determined he was to win. At first, I wasn't surprised by the sleepy soar he pulled off, but the quick trick he had up his sleeve was better than I thought it was. Maybe I'm too much of a worrywart, but he probably doesn't need as much training as I thought- within what felt like minutes, he had already nabbed the doll from my loftwing's clutches. We ran through the same scenario three times before we noticed what looked like ants beginning to stir on the surface of our far-off island home. They crawled out of the anthill buildings and it wasn't long before they started making trips between other blobs of dirt in the sky. We agreed to train more before dinner.

Maybe it was the way how Groose and his cronies caught us as we were flying back in that tipped us off. The tall brood of a boy glared openly at us from afar, arms crossed over his burly chest in his typical intimidating stance. I rolled my eyes at him and his pointy hair as we entered the Academy kitchen for breakfast, Link in tow. He pretended not to notice our audience, as usual. Still . . . there was this lingering sense that even though Groose ignored us for the rest of the day- save for those judging stares- he couldn't wait to gang up on us again.

It wasn't until the next early morning that we realized we had to up our game- as soon as we were up and ready to fly, we spotted three enemy birds mocking us on the skyline.


End file.
